Description

QUEEN SQUARE
656-1/40/1328 (South side)

Nos.12 AND 13 and attached railings (Formerly Listed as: QUEEN SQUARE (South side) Nos.5-13 (Consec) Francis Hotel)
12/06/50

GV I

Two terrace houses at end, now offices. Queen Square built between 1729 and 1736, south side possibly last, c1735, architect John Wood the Elder.
MATERIALS: Limestone ashlar, slate roofs.
PLAN: Two houses form west end of former complete terrace of houses in one palace front forming south side of Queen Square, listed separately from adjacent Francis Hotel (qv), largely rebuilt following substantial damage from bombing. Shared later rear wing, each half-cylindrical stair turret to domed head. No.13 has full attic storey added, and rear develops as full four storeys.
EXTERIOR: Three storeys, attic and basement. No.13 with pediment and slightly brought forward, each three windows, all plain sash, except two+one original twelve-pane dormers. Second floor has eared architraves, and first floor moulded architrave and splay, with straight cornice over pulvinated frieze, windows all extended down through former sill band. Basement, in plinth, has two plain sash to No.12 and two four-pane to No.13. At ground floor windows also in splay surrounds, and to No.13 in sunk plain arched panels, with impost band. No.12 has seven-panel door, top panel glazed, in moulded architrave and with pilasters carrying deep scroll consoles to full entablature, and with frieze panel having high relief carving of a mask of Pan, with garlands. Doorway shares broad stone landing on steps with doorway to adjoining Francis Hotel. No.13 has lofty pair of panelled doors under double radial fanlight in deep reveal, stone steps to landing. First floor platband to No.12, modillion cornice, central lead downpipe, coped party divisions, and large shared stack in mansard roof. `QUEEN SQUARE¿ incised in capitals on west end of cill band of No.13. Fine western return to Princes Street continues detailing from Queen Square frontage, with pedimented three-bay centre brought forward, high attic, each side having single small sash. Pedimented unit has blind lights generally, but with one deep eight-pane sash at first floor, taken through sill band, and basement light to left. Small square stack rises from apex of pediment. To rear No.12 has two large sixteen-pane dormers in mansard roof, above wide twelve-pane, plain, and four-pane sash, with, to right, stair turret with two plain arched sashes, lower one flanked by small rectangular lights, with sill bands, turret paired with one in immediately adjoining bay in Francis Hotel. Flat roofed four storey wing has sashes in single bay. No.13 has two twelve-pane sashes to full attic, above stair turret with arched sashes to two levels, twelve-pane with radial bars above one with side-lights and margin panes. To right is nine-pane above deep fifteen-pane, and wing has sashes in single bay.
INTERIORS: In Office use. Not inspected. Interiors recorded by Bath Preservation Trust survey of interiors. Nos.12-13 are linked internally. No.12 has a cantilevered wooden stair with dado, curved out at half landing to first floor; pale grey reeded fireplace to ground floor front room, with cupboard to right; fewer surviving features on upper floors, showing evidence of an early C19 campaign of remodelling such as grey marble fireplace and panelled cupboard to first floor front room. No.13 has a similar staircase, apsed with Venetian window at half-landing; fanlight over inner hall door; ground floor front room with reeded grey marble fireplace, Vitruvian scrolled frieze to ceiling. Basement retains cast iron range with founder's mark Tuck of Bath. First floor front room with panelled alcove, grey marble fireplace with reeded columns, shutters, six-panel door. Few features on upper floors.
SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: On Queen Square front railing on ashlar curb encloses basement areas, returned at doorways. Although south range to Queen Square was least important architecturally in ensemble, two properties are important survivals, having been spared from destruction by bombing of much of remainder of range.
HISTORY: John Wood leased the site from Robert Gay from 1728 onwards, and granted underleases in 1729-1731 to a range of developers, and the houses are first recorded as occupied in the rate books in 1734. Wood originally intended to level the sloping site, but this was abandoned on the grounds of cost. Queen Square is of exceptional importance as the first large scale instance of town planning to arrive at Bath. Wood drew on precedents in contemporary London house building and, through the courageous and skilful pursuit of his vision, created a monumental ensemble on a fresh sloping site some distance to the west of the former city walls. Each side of the square forms a symmetrical composition, but none of the sides are alike. Queen Square forms the earliest, and lowest, element in the sequence of set-pieces by the Woods which culminates with the Royal Crescent.
SOURCES: Tim Mowl and Brian Earnshaw, 'John Wood. Architect of Obsession' (1988), 65-86; Walter Ison, 'The Georgian Buildings of Bath' (2nd ed. 1980), 115-120, 226-28.

Listing NGR: ST7478064933

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17526030

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair
• 
  Hampshire: South (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Dorset (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Warwickshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Cork: City and County (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Renovating Old Houses: Bringing New Life to Vintage Homes (For Pros By Pros)